Department of Justice

Alburquerque Felon Pleads Guilty to Violating Federal Firearms Laws

ALBUQUERQUE – Phillip Moffett, 31, of Albuquerque, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court to violating the federal firearms laws by being a felon in possession of a firearm under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Moffett was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed in Feb. 2017, with unlawfully possessing a firearm on Dec. 27, 2016, in Bernalillo County, N.M. According to the complaint, law enforcement officers arrested Moffett after finding him asleep in a stolen vehicle. During a search incident to Moffett’s arrest, the officers found a firearm that had recently been reported as stolen during the burglary of a gun shop in Rio Rancho, N.M.

Moffett was indicted on July 27, 2017, and was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. According to the indictment, Moffett was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because of his prior felony conviction for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon against a household member.

During today’s proceedings, Moffett pled guilty to the indictment and admitted that he was prohibited from possessing a firearm on Dec. 27, 2016, because of his status as a convicted felon. At sentencing, Moffett faces a maximum penalty of ten years in federal prison. He remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Walsh.